All posts tagged CEOs

It was not long ago that Sophia Amoruso was dumpster diving for bagels and getting caught shoplifting hair products and shower curtain rings. Now she’s the chief executive of a multi-million-dollar retailer. Amoruso founded a vintage clothing store on eBay in 2006 with no seed funding, no managerial experience and, she now says, no idea what she was getting herself into. In a recent interview, she spoke about her rapid rise in retail, her new foundation and why she believes “cash is king.” Read More »

But Silbermann, who is 31 and a first-time entrepreneur, has another important project at home: his 18-month-old son. He told the Journal’s Douglas MacMillan that fatherhood is “awesome,” though admitted “the first few months were really tough.” After the jump, learn how he balances the demands of Pinterest and parenthood. Read More »

Ford CEO Alan Mulally flirted with Microsoft for longer than previously known before driving away.

Mulally on Tuesday ended months of speculation by saying he won’t leave Ford for Microsoft. But the Ford CEO had been telling people inside Ford for weeks that he wouldn’t be the next Microsoft CEO, people familiar with those discussions said.

Other people familiar with Mulally’s thinking said the Ford executive soured on the Microsoft job in part because of what he perceived to be leaks from Microsoft about the search process. Microsoft’s board has been seeking a new leader since Steve Ballmer said in August he planned to retire within a year. Read More »

It’s an intriguing business-school case study: What happens when a new chief executive has to share a board with his predecessors?

Microsoft’s next chief could face just such a scenario, with not only company founder Bill Gates on the board, but 14-year CEO Steve Ballmer as well. The possibility of sharing a board with Ballmer and Gates has worried some executives who have discussed the CEO job with Microsoft directors.

A look at academic research and prior examples of CEOs sharing boards with their past founders and CEOs shows mixed results. Read More »